But there is also the appeal of Sanders’s message. In state-by-state polling Sanders’s best numbers come from the same age group.Īt the Bushwick party several people contrasted Sanders’s solidity with the record of Clinton: specifically her previous opposition, when running for senator, to same-sex marriage. In a direct vote between Clinton and Sanders, 45% said they would vote for the former secretary of state, 44% for Sanders. He’s been consistent warrior against economic inequality since the 60s, and he hasn’t changed a bit,” Kawashima-Ginsberg says.Īn Economist/YouGov poll in July found strong support for Sanders among 18- to 29-year-olds. That is where Sanders, with his longstanding record of supporting women’s rights and economic equality, comes in. This shared upbringing has meant many young voters are “unable to trust” politicians, according to Kawashima-Ginsberg. So the social contrast that people generally have – that you invest in your education and you get paid off – was a myth for them.” “And then as they were graduating from college the recession hit. That’s the world they grew up in: their country is at war, it seemed to have lost purpose. If you think about the millennials, that age group, they turned 18 as President George W Bush took office. “Part of it is really sort of the age that they grew up in. Three-quarters of young people believe voting is not an effective way to change society, she says. Kei Kawashima-Ginsberg is director of the Center for Information and Research on Civic Learning and Engagement, an organisation that encourages young people to get involved in politics. The 2014 midterms saw the lowest youth turnout ever: just 19.9%. The number of 18- to 29-year-olds voting declined from 2008 to 2012. Young people are not even supposed to be interested in politics right now.
Politicians do not often inspire memes, or clothing lines, or indeed young people in general. There’s even one with cartoon image of the 73-year-old legislator riding a unicorn, along with the message: “Bernie Sanders is magical.”Ī Bernie Sanders support wears a shirt that reads ‘Bernie is bae’. There’s a T-shirt with “Talk Bernie to me” written on it. There’s a T-shirt with the message “Bernie is Bae” (a similar design was also available at the Bushwick party). The online clothing store LookHuman has been capitalising on Sanders’s popularity for months. He has the largest number of people liking his messages, sharing his thoughts, and commenting on his plans.īernie Sanders-branded clothing is big online as well – it is not restricted to Bushwick lofts.
Of all those running for president, Sanders has the highest-level engagement on his individual Facebook posts, according to social media monitor CrowdTangle. On Facebook 1.8 million people like Sanders’s page, 0.6 million more than the Democratic frontrunner Hillary Clinton, and 1.6 million more than Republican Jeb Bush. On Instagram, #feelthebern and #Bernie2016 vie for dominance with the #babesforbernie hashtag – which is mostly self-applied by mostly young women who are mostly holding or wearing some sort of Sanders apparel. He’s the only one who’s really looking out for those groups.”Ī glance at social media, where Sanders has inspired countless hashtags, memes and general fanfare, gives an insight into the sort of cult following he is amassing. “I like that he’s the candidate that supports women and marginalised individuals. “He’s the only person running who I’d actually want to be in the White House,” Basketville says. She was at the viewing party here three weeks ago – the first time she has attended an event supporting a political candidate. His consistency.”īeth Basketville, 25, is among those waiting in line at the printing table. “And I appreciate the guy’s honesty and his steadfastness to his beliefs. “Bernie Sanders uses socialism in the way it makes sense, which is just good, common, moral, ethical policy,” Kowalczyk says. It’s a neighbourhood where artists, musicians and writers rub up against longer-term, mostly Hispanic residents. The screen-printing evening is taking place in Bushwick, an area known for – or lamented as – being the hippest part of Brooklyn. The Vermont senator – an independent in the Senate, but running for the Democratic nomination – hosted a live webcast in July that was watched by around 100,000 people at 3,500 different events nationwide. Since declaring his bid for the White House in April, Sanders, a self-stated Democratic socialist, has held some of the biggest rallies of any of the Democratic or Republican candidates.
Bernie Sanders screen-printed T-shirts hang to dry in a Brooklyn loft.
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